Founder and Managing Director of the Barkhausen Institut Prof. Dr. Dr. hc Gerhard Fettweis was awarded the prestigious UNIPRENEUR Founders Award on September 6, 2023.

Gerhard Fettweis has already supported 20 companies during their foundation in Dresden. To this day, he has created more than 500 new jobs in the field of research and development in Dresden.

"In 1994, my appointment at TU Dresden meant not only an exciting scientific challenge for me, but also an obligation to contribute to the economic development of Saxony," said Prof. Gerhard Fettweis. "The fact that we have been able to successfully implement this with graduates and their startups, and that we have been honored with the UNIPRENEURS award for this, means a very special honor for me."

With 700 nominations from founders, UNIPRENEURS is the largest award for the promotion of entrepreneurship in higher education and research. The initiative is under the aegis of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

The UNIPRENEURS professors are highly respected authorities at their respective universities and have made significant contributions to the transfer of innovation to industry. The professors represent the highest research achievements in engineering, economics, natural sciences, computer science and medicine. Together, the UNIPRENEURS have supported over 1,200 startups as mentors, advisors or investors. More than half of the professors honored have founded startups themselves.